While many previous games set in Middle-earth have revolved around the major events or characters depicted in Tolkien's books, Shadow of Mordor offers a new chapter that fits comfortably between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Players control a lone ranger by the name of Talion as he journeys deep into the heart of Mordor in the days before it transforms into a blasted hellscape. Along the way, developer Monolith is exploring a fascinating next-gen approach to enemies, encounters, and storytelling, one in which every player shapes their own story through the choices they make. The Nemesis System assures that every enemy you fight is a named foe, and if they survive their battle with you, they continue to grow, improve, and act in the world, even as you attempt to do the same with Talion. Our cover story recounts our extensive look at the game in action, from combat and leveling to story and setting.

« Last Edit: November 12, 2013, 05:40:15 PM by CeeKay »

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You play a resurrected ranger wight with magical superpowers... right. How is this Lord of the Rings again?

Note: I'm very sensitive to games that completely break LOTR lore. The only one that has managed to treat the setting respectfully so far is Lord of the Rings Online, at least in my opinion. This sounds like it's going to be the worst of the bunch. Well okay, it won't be able to beat that Battlefield-thingy where you started out by doing 30-hit combos on Sauron with a flaming sword. That one takes the cake.

You play a resurrected ranger wight with magical superpowers... right. How is this Lord of the Rings again?

Note: I'm very sensitive to games that completely break LOTR lore. The only one that has managed to treat the setting respectfully so far is Lord of the Rings Online, at least in my opinion. This sounds like it's going to be the worst of the bunch. Well okay, it won't be able to beat that Battlefield-thingy where you started out by doing 30-hit combos on Sauron with a flaming sword. That one takes the cake.

I can't vouch for LOTRO as i have never played it(but that's good that it is like that)

I have to put forward 'The Fellowship of the Ring' game that was released in about 2002,but then they couldn't do the sequel(even though it was planned and they had started with art work) as EA came along with the official movie games,whereas The FOTR was officially from the 'Tolkien Estate' side of things rather than Warner/movies side of things

Instead of wraith powers they should have given him the mercantile powers of a hobbit trader. The game would be an equal mix of 3rd person action rpg mixed with managing an expanding business. In addition to overcoming the dark forces of mordor, he also has to weather a recession in the increasingly litigious world of Middle Earth.

I like the approach they are taking with the enemy henchmen and the system of followers.

Yeah, that video makes the game look cool. Not sure why they felt they needed the LOTRO license (other than it maybe guarantees some purchases on it alone and they have the license), but this also would have been cool in its own universe. I am definitely interested in it.

I like the approach they are taking with the enemy henchmen and the system of followers.

Yeah, that video makes the game look cool. Not sure why they felt they needed the LOTRO license (other than it maybe guarantees some purchases on it alone and they have the license), but this also would have been cool in its own universe. I am definitely interested in it.

Turning henchmen into allies against the bosses sounds fun as hell. I love the idea of slowly taking out an army from the inside. The nemesis system and weapon enhancements sound like a great addition to the genre and make it a lot more immersive than simply working through a list of enemies.

I'm in for any game that gives me an ability or power to screw with the AI. I could easily lose an hour in Oblivion using the rage spell on npcs and watching madness break out. If this game lets me turn orcs against each other, or mind-meld a troll and watch it rampage on it's former allies, I'm all in.

I can't imagine the main character being welcomed by the good races of Middle Earth with that kind of power. He's part wraith, right?

I can't imagine the main character being welcomed by the good races of Middle Earth with that kind of power. He's part wraith, right?

Don't worry too much about the lore. This game has about as much to do with Tolkien's Middle-earth as Game of Thrones has with Xena. It's a hugely expensive fanfic that should have been written for a D&D setting instead, because this is about as far as you can get from The Lord of the Rings.

Anyone seen any good pre-release impressions on this? I watched a long video of the Nemesis (I think that's what they said?) system, and it certainly looked interesting... you can get 25% off on green man with a pre-purchase this week, but I was hoping to wait for reviews... curious what people have seen.

I watched a stream of this a while back and have it pre-ordered on PS4. The Nemesis system looks fun and I like the risk/reward you get with taking on orcs without preparing for it. The open-world also looks like fun and gives a good amount of content that you can just take part in or ignore. The fact that the game doesn't entirely wait on your every action is pretty cool.

Even with the deluge of open world games coming this fall, I'm looking forward to this one due to the setting and the changes to the usual model.

I watched a stream of this a while back and have it pre-ordered on PS4. The Nemesis system looks fun and I like the risk/reward you get with taking on orcs without preparing for it. The open-world also looks like fun and gives a good amount of content that you can just take part in or ignore. The fact that the game doesn't entirely wait on your every action is pretty cool.

Even with the deluge of open world games coming this fall, I'm looking forward to this one due to the setting and the changes to the usual model.

The Game Informer feature article on it awhile back made it sound really cool, but with so many must-buy games coming out this fall I've decided to wait and see how the reviews shake out. Middle Earth games have always been so hit-or-miss that I'm a little skeptical despite the fact that everything I've read sounds pretty awesome.

I'm really excited for this game and wanted to get it on day 1, but with Forza Horizon 2 coming out that same day and Disney Infinity the week before, I'm now thinking I'll just be waiting a few months until things slow down. Which is too bad for this dev team since it sounds like they've created a really great game.

My resolve is definitely starting to crumble the more videos I watch. While I had my mind set on Forza Horizons 2 as my next big purchase, I'd more in the mood for a good RPG than a good racing game. I don't need it to be earth-shatteringly brilliant, but if it's getting some 8s and packs 20+ hours of gameplay, I'll be all over it.